Adhesive tape dispensing device



Dec. 5, 1944.

P. s. MADSEN ADHESIVE TAPE DISPENSING DEVICE Filed June 5, 1941 2Shats-Sheet l Dec. 5,11944. P. s. MADSEN 4,

ADHESIVE TAPE DISPEN SING DEVICE Filed June 5, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Patented Dec. 5, 1944 ADHESIVE TAPE DISPENSING DEVICE Paul S. Madsen,Bethany, Conn., assignor to The Seamless Rubber Company, New Haven,Conn, a corporation of Connecticut Application June 5, 1941, Serial No.396,652

(cram-55.5)-

10 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in adhesive tape dispensingdevices of a kind described in my application Serial No. 360,397, filedOctober 9, 1940, that is to say, those in which a roller or shaft actsas a support for rolls or spools of adhesive tape arranged side by sideand of assorted widths, there being provided a cutting device forsevering at the desired point the tape pulled down from a roll, andthere also being provided a casing or enclosing structure which protectsthe rolls and the cutting mechanism from soiling and contamination whenthe device is not in use.

One of the objects of the present invention is the general improvementof dispensing devices of this type.

Another object is to provide an improved and simplified cuttingmechanism.

A further object is to provide improvements in the mounting of the rollsand that of the cutting mechanism.

Another purpose I have'in view is to make the manipulation of the devicein cutting ofi tape easier and more convenient than heretofore while atthe same time providing a tape dispensing device having relatively fewparts and which can be manufactured at low cost. I

To these and other ends the invention con sists in the novel featuresand combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a tape dispensing device embodying myinvention, showing the same as it appears supported upon a suitablesupporting wall, with the casing opened for access to the tape rolls andcutting mechanism;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the device shown in Fig. 1, the dependinglid 01' cover of the casing being partially broken away;

Figs. 3, 4 and are sections respectively on lines 3-43, 4-4, and 5-5 ofFig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a detailed enlarged section on line 5t of Fig. 3;

Fig. 7 is a detailed enlarged section on line 1-4 Fig. i;-

Fig. 8 is a detailed enlarged section taken on line 88 of Fig. 1,showing, however, the casing in the closed position; and

Fig. 9 is an enlarged section on line 99 f Fig. 1.

In the form of my device selected for illustrattion, which is a formwell adapted for use in hospitals and in the omces of physicians, aplurality of rolls of adhesive surgical tape of assorted widths aremounted on a bracketedroller or shaft side by side so as to be freelyrotatable thereon.

Associated with the roller or shaft is a cutting mechanism comprising aguideway or track in front of which are pendent the free ends of thetape rolls and to which a portion of the tape is adapted to be secured,in position fo cutting, by the adhesive material on the face of thetape.This guideway, comprising two members separated at a slight interval,has a sliding knife device projecting between the guide members adapted.to be moved in either of two directions for the purpose of cutting thetape. The shaft holding the rolls is mounted in aremovable manner insuitable bracket members and these bracket members together with theabove mentioned gui'deway with its associated sliding knife re mountedin a box -like enclosing casing adapted to be mounted at a convenientheight on a suitable supporting wall. This casing is provided at thefront with a cover member or lid which in the open position depends fromthe lower part of the casing so as to provide convenient access to thetape rolls and the cutting mechanism.

In the drawings the roll-holding shaft is shown at H], the rolls ofadhesive tape at l i, the guideway or track for the knife at it, and thesliding knife device at IS. The casing as a whole is indicated at M, andthe same comprises a box-like body l5 open at the front, and a hingedlid or cover member It. This cover member is hinged to the casing bodyat points adjacent the lower margin of the latter, as indicated at ll.The shaft Ill is supported in brackets it provided within the bodyportion of the casing.

The casing can b conveniently formed of sheet metal. It is attached to asupporting wall such as indicated at it in Fig. 2, in any convenientmanner, as by providing screws 20 which are screwed into the supportingwall and are engaged by keyhole slots provided in the rear wall 22 ofthe casing. I

The brackets 88 can be conveniently formed as metal plates of therequired stiffness arranged transversely within the box structure atpoints spaced inwardly somewhat from the ends of the latter. Theseplates can be readilyfastened in place by means such as flanges 23provided thereon at the rear thereof, said flanges being attached as byspot welding to the back wall of the vbox. Each of the plate-likebrackets I8 is suitably cut away at the front as indicated at 24 toprovide a mounting for the shaft In, this mounting including anangularly arranged seat or notch 25 into which the corresponding endportion of the shaft can be set from the front of the device and fromwhich the shaft will not readily be displaced in ordinary use. It willbe understood,

however, that when it is desired to remove the shaft from the bracketsthis can be very conveniently done.

The shaft l0 can be conveniently provided by cutting a rod of brass orlike metal to the proper length. The diameter of this rod can beconsiderably less than that of the central openings provided in the taperolls. Usually these tape rolls are provided with inner core or sleevemem-- bers of paper or the like, one of such sleeves being indicated at26 in Fig. 3. For mounting all of the rolls on the small-diametered rod,I prefer to provide a paper or like mounting sleeve 21 on the rod, inloosely embracing relation, in that part of the rod which is between thebrackets I8. The rod is shiftable in the brackets lengthwise of thecasing to a limited degree because I prefer to provide a rod of onlyslightly less length than the box so that if the rod is shiftedlengthwise a small distance in one or the other direction one of itsends will abut against the corresponding end of the box. In this mannersuch endwise movement of the rod as would move it out of the brackets isprevented. Some shifting of the rolls relatively to the rod is permittedso as to facilitate the placing of the rolls in position within thecasing.

The guideway l2 previously mentioned may advantageously comprise memberswhich in cross section are flattened and elongated. In the particularform shown, the members are formed of sheet metal and there is an uppermember 28 and a lower member 29 of this material. Preferably thesemembers are bent so as toprovide thickened track members at their frontedges. In the form shown, the upper member has an upwardly andrearwardly bent flange 28' and the lower member has a downwardly andrearwardly bent flange 2 9. These guide members 28, 29 are mounted in asuitable manner from the box-like structure, and in the case illustratedthey are mounted from the end walls of thebox by means of supportinglugs or brackets 36. These brackets are of angular form, having uprightportions 3| welded to the end walls of the box, and horizontal portions32 extending between and welded to the end portions of the guide members26, 29. The upper face of member 29 is placed against the lower face ofpart 32, and the lower face of member 28 is placed against the upperface of part 32, and the parts are then welded together orinterconnected in some other suitable manner. It will be seen,therefore, that the horizon tal parts 32 of the brackets 30 serve tospace apart the guide members 28, 29 at the required distance. It willbe noted that the track comprising the parts 28, 29 is preferablylocated at the front lower part of the box, there being a small space 33in between the track and the lower margin of the box, as indicated inFig. 9; The front curved-over portions of the guide members, however,are located substantially flush with the margin of the front opening ofthe box. In this part of the box the same is shouldered to provide aforwardly extending rim 34 over which the cover member I6 is adapted tofit, and the rim 34 can advantageously have a reversely turn'ed edge, asindicated at 35.

The sliding knife device l3 which is mounted on and guided along theguideway, may advantageously comprise a holder 36 of Bakelite or othersuitable molded plastic material, said holder being manipulable from thefront of the device to slide it along the guideway and serving to holdor carry tape-severing means entering the space. between the members ofthe guideway. In this particular case, the holder is equipped with twoknives 31 arranged in inwardly converging relation, as shown in Fig. 5.In this particular case these knives are so-called surgical knives ofstandard form procurable in the market, comprising thin narrow bladestapering to a point. The holder 36 is preferably made in two sections,namely a lower section 38 and an upper section 39. The knives 31 arereceived in suitably shaped inclined grooves 40 formed in the upper faceportion of the lower section. These grooves together with the lower faceof the upper section create seats for the body portions of the knives.As will be seen in Figs. 3 and 6, the lower section 38, where the sameis grooved for the knives, extends forwardly beyond the upper section,as indicated at 4|, providin a grooved extension at each end of theholder into which a knife can be readily introduced from the front.leaving a portion of the butt of the knife exposed when the knife is inthe fully assembled position. On the extension 4| small side shouldersare formed, as indicated at 42, to prevent lateral displacement of theknife;

Each section of the knife holder is provided with a middle roundedforward projection 43, and these projections in conjunction form aconvenient' manipulating handle for the holder, which handle can bereadily held between the thumb and forefinger in manipulatingthe holder.The two sections of the holder are held together by means such asrivets, there being end rivets 44 and an intermediate rivet 45. Therivet 45 serves as a means for anchoring a thin metal bar 46 which isrigidly fastened to the holder in a groove 41 and has a part of thinsharpened contour located between the members of the track or guidewaybetween the inner ends of the knives. This member 46 projects inwardlypast the rear edges of the track members and in that region it serves asa carrier for a leaf spring 48 the extremities 49 of which bear againstthe rear edges of the track members at the respective sides of the bar.In this particular form, the spring has a slot 50 which fits over theend of the bar, and a cotter pin 5| engaging a hole in the bar holds the.spring removably in place.

The points of the knives 31 are indicated at 52, and at 53 there isindicated an inclined sharpened edge on the knife leading to the point.One

of these edges 53 cuts toward the right and the.

other one toward the left.

The rivets 44 previously mentioned also serve as mountings for guiderollers carried by the holder and engaging the front edge portion of thetrack. In the device shown in the drawings these rivets serve asmountings for rollers 54 formed of Bakelite or the like and free to turnabout the corresponding rivet shanks. The holder sections are cut away,as shown at 55, in order to provide recesses in which the major portionsof the rollers are received, but the rollers extend inwardly past theholder to a slight degree and each of these rollers is provided with aperipheral guide rib 56 of such profile that the holder will beeffectively guided by the flaring entrance portion at the mouth of theguide space between the upper and lower members of the'guide. The spring48 bearing against the rear edges of the guide members serves tomaintain the holder in a resilient manner against the front of the guideso that the holder will be effectively and easily i there being in thisinstance two of these springs.

Each spring 51 has one portion fastened inside the body, as indicated at58, while the other end portion of the spring, indicated at 59, projectsforwardly alongside the rim 34 previously mentioned. In this locationthe projecting end of the spring, which is curved, is adapted to beengaged by a thickened portion 60 at the edge of the lid or cover so asto retain the lid or cover in the closed position in a resilient manner.However, by exerting pressure on the upper part of the lid the springscan be readily released for opening the box, and upon opening, the lidwill swing down to the position indicated in Fig. 2. The tape rolls andthe knife device will then be readily accessible for manipulation.

When it is desired to obtain'a piece of adhesive surgical tape of givenlength for the purpose of bandaging a wound or the like, the appropriatetape roll is manipulated so that the de pending portion of tape willhave that portion which is to be severed opposite the track or guideway.The tape is manipulated so that at the portion to be severed it will bepressed'against the thick rounded front edges of the guideway so as toadhere strongly thereto, thus effectively holding the tape' in positionfor cutting; The knife holder is then manipulated to sever the tape,being moved to the right or left as the case may be, so that the cuttingedge of one or the other of the knives will come against one side edgeof the tape and will move across and sever it by a shearing action. Theportion of tape which has been severed will continue to adhere to thetrack or guideway, its adhesive contact with the lower member of thelatter being maintained. Thus the separated portion will be held inposition until the operator grasps its lower end to pull it off of theguideway and put it to use.

A very important advantage of the device arises from the fact that theoperation of cuttingoif the tape to the required length can be performedby the physician or nurse by using one hand (which first pulls down thetape and in so doing aflixes it to the track, second, slides the knife,and third, pulls off the cut piece) leaving the other hand free, forother work.

Another important advantagearises from the fact that if the step ofpressing the tape into adhesive contact with the guide by manualmanipulation be omitted, the pressing action will nevertheless beeffected. This is due to the provision of the rollers operating inadvance of the knives and acted upon by the spring 48 or its equivalent.Each roller operates .to force the textile web against the guideway, andinto the guideway to an extent, and to form a valley or creaselikeformation in the web into which the knife in following will enter, thusfacilitating the cutting action. The action of a pressing and creasingroller operating in advance of the knife enables the knife to beoperated under optimum conditions.

Another feature of advantage arises from the simple form of track orguideway employed and the fact that the knife holder has a partextending through the guideway and also a part engaging the rear edgeportion of the guideway so that the holder is pressed against theguideway from the rear as well as from the front. This enables a simpleform of guide structure to be employed, having only two guide membersfor the knife holder.

In case one of the knives becomes dull, the

same can be readily withdrawn from the front of the holder simply bypullingit forwardly, and a new knife inserted. The wedge-like shape ofthe knives assists materially in holding them in operative positionwithout the need of special fastenings.

The relative simplicity of the construction lends itself to sanitarycleanliness.

The casing or cabinet is of simple form and permits the tape rolls andthe severing mechanism to be fully enclosed and protected from dirt anddust when the device is not in use. When it is desired to use the deviceit is simply necessary. to pull down the cover member in order to havethe tape rolls and the severing mechanism completely accessible formanipulation.

It is of advantage that in the operative position the track or guidewayis at the lower part of the box structure but well toward the front, theknife holder body preferably being wholly or substantially in front ofthe box but nevertheless adapted to be housed by a cover member or lidhaving an outer wall and side walls as in the example shown. When thedevice is in the open position the cover member is disposed below andalso behind the knife holder body so as to be entirely out of the way.

While I have shown herein only one form of my dispensing device it is tobe understood that the invention can be embodied in various other forms,and that various modifications and changes in the organization of partsand in the details can be made without departing from the principles ofmy invention or the scope of the claims.

What I claim is:

1. A dispensing device for adhesive tape in roll form, comprising acasing in which the rolls are rotatably supported side by side withtheir free ends of tape depending at the front of device, a

knife guide in the casing behind the ends of roll form, a casing ofsubstantially rectangular cross section having a top wall, a rear wall,a bottom wall, and open at the front, a mounting shaft in said casingfor a series of rolls arranged side by side, said mounting being solocated that the free ends of tape from the-rolls depend at the front ofthe casing, a guide in the casing behind the ends of tape, a knifeentering the guide, a manipulator for the knife in front of the guideoutside of the casing, and a cover for the easing which in the closedposition extends over and encloses said manipulator, said cover havingan outer wall and side walls and being hinged to the casing at pointsbelow said guide and in its open position depending from the bottom wallof the casing.

3. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape in wound up rolls, a casing,a mounting therein for a plurality of rolls arranged side by side, saidmounting being so located that the tape ends can hang down at the frontof the casing, a knife for severing the tape, a track for guiding saidknife having opposed parallel members one above the other, andsupporting brackets for said track attached to the casing and havingtrack-supporting portions entering the space between said track members,one track member being fastened to one face of said portion and theother track member being fastened to the opposite face.

4. A dispensing device for adhesive tape in roll form, comprising amounting, a plurality of rolls of wound-up adhesive tape supported onsaid mounting side by side, said rolls having free ends of tape at thefront of the device depending below the axes of the rolls, a guide atthe front of the device behind the tape ends, a holder guided along saidguide at the front of the latter and comprising separate upper and lowersections, a bar extending rearwardly from said sections through theguide, a leaf spring carried by the rear portion of said bar and havingportions contacting the guide at the rear, and pointed knives removablyheld between the holder sections at the respective sides of the bar andarranged at an angle so as to be in inwardly-converging relation, saidknives being insertable into the holder from the front of the latter.

5. A dispensing device for adhesive tape in roll form, comprising amounting on which the rolls are rotatably supported side by side withtheir free ends of tape depending at the front of the device, a guidebehind the tape ends, a knife holder at the front of the guide, a barconnected to the holder and extending through the guide and resilientlysupported upon the rear surface of the guide, guide rollers carried bythe holder at the respective sides of the bar and engaging the guide,and pointed cutting knives between the respective rollers and the barhaving their inner ends within the guide.

6. A dispensing device for adhesive tape in roll form adapted to besupported on a suitable supporting wall and comprising a casing ofsubstantially rectangular cross section closed at the top, bottom andrear portions but open at the front, brackets in said casing adjacentthe respective ends thereof, a shaft removably mounted in said bracketsin the interior of the casing, a series of rolls of wound-up adhesivetape arranged side by side on said shaft and having partially-unwoundportions hanging down below the roll axes at the front of the device, anabutment arranged below the shaft and behind the hanging ends of tape,against which said ends are moved rearwardly for adhesive connectionwith the abutment by means of their adhesive material during the cuttingoperation, said abutment being in the form of a bridge spaced at itsupper part fromthe top of the casing and at its lower part from thecasing bottom, a. knife movable parallel to the shaft for severing thetape ends while held against said abutment, a manipula'tor for saidknife connected thereto and located'at the front of said abutment, and acover for the casing which in the closed position extends over andencloses said manipulator.

I. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape in wound-up rolls, a casing,a mounting therein for a plurality of rolls arranged side by side, saidmounting being so located that the tape ends hang down below the rollaxes at the front of the casing, supporting brackets attached to theeasing walls adjacent the respective ends of the mounting and havingangularly-disposed projecting track-supporting portions, track memberscomprising plates attached respectively to the upper and lower surfacesof said track-supporting portions and spaced apart by said portions,said plates-being extended forwardly from said brackets and havingreversely-tumed and curved forward edge portions adapted to act assecuring areas for securing the tape by its adhesive material, and aknife guided by said track members.

8. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape wound up in rolled form, thecombination of a casing of substantially rectangular cross sectionhaving a rear wall adapted to be supported against a suitable supportand having parallel upper and lower walls with free forward edgesbetween which the front portion of the casing is left open, a shaftcarrying a plurality of rolls of wound adhesiv tape arranged side byside, means for mounting said shaft from the end portions of the casingso that the rolls are supported substantially midway between the topwall and the bottom wall, the roll axis also being intermediate the rearwall and the front rim of the casing, a track comprising upper and lowermembers spaced slightly from each other mounted from the end walls ofthe casing so that the front parts of the track members are locatedsubstantially at the open front mouth portion of the easing but at adistance considerably below the center and in adjacency to the bottomwall of the casing although somewhat spaced from said bottom wall, saidtrack being adapted to act as a cutting support for the tape behind thetape ends which depend from the rolls, a cutting knife projectingsubstantially horizontally and rearwardly from the front of the casinginto the space between said track members and having a manipulatordisposed in front and outside of the casing whereby the knife can bemoved along the track, and a cover adapted to be set over the casing atthe front and which, in closed position, extends over and encloses themanipulator.

9. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape Wound up in rolled form, thecombination of a casing of substantially rectangular cross sectionhaving a rear wall adapted to be supported against a suitable supportand having parallel upper and lower walls with free forward edgesbetween which the front portion of the casing is left open, a shaftcarrying a plurality of rolls of wound adhesive tape arranged side byside, means for mounting said shaft from the end portions of the casingso that the rolls are supported substantially midway between the topwall and the bottom wall, the roll axis also being intermediate the rearwall and the front rim of the casing, a track comprising upper and lowermembers spaced slightly from each other mounted from the end walls ofthe casing so that the front parts of the track members are locatedsubstantially at the open front mouth portion of the casing but at adistance considerably below the center and in adjacency to the bottomwall of the casing although somewhat spaced from said bottom wall, saidtrack being adapted to act as a cutting support for the tape behind thetape ends which depend from the rolls, a cutting knife projectingsubstantially horizontally and rearwardly from the front of thecasingside of the casing whereby the knife can be moved along the track, and acoveradapted to be set over the casing at the front and which, in closedposition, extends over and encloses the manipulator, said'cover beinghinged to the free edge portion of the bottom wall of the casing andhaving an inoperative position in which it hangs down substantiallyvertically from the casing.

10. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape in wound up rolls, thecombination of a casing of substantially rectangular cross sectionhaving a rear wall adapted to be placed against a suitable support andhaving substantially horizontal upper,

and lower walls provided with free forward edges between which thecasing is left open, a shaft carrying a plurality of rolls of adhesivetape arranged side by side, means for mounting said shaft in the casingso that the axis of the rolls is intermediate the upper and lower wallsof the casing and intermediate the rear wall and the open mouth or rimportion, supporting brackets attached to the walls at the ends of thecasing and having angularly disposed projecting tracksupportingportions, track memberscomprising plates attached respectively to theupper and lower surfaces of said track-supporting portions and spacedapart by said portions, said plates being extended forwardly from saidbrackets and having reversely turned and curved forward edge portionsadapted to act as securing areas for securing the tape by its adhesivematerial, the forward edge portions of said track members being locatedsubstantially at the openmouth portion ofthe casing in a location wherethey are spaced upwardly from the bottom of the casing to some extentbut at a greater distance downwardly from the horizontal plane of theshaft, a knife projecting into the space between. the track members andadapted to sever the tape, and a manipulator for the knife, rigidtherewith and located forwardly of the mouth portion of the casing.

, PAUL S. MADSEN.

